Sermons, ramblings, and maybe an occasional rant from a Lutheran subject of Jesus Christ.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

Prayer of the Church -- 6th Sunday of Easter

Father of lights, every good and perfect gift comes from you.Inspire us to think those things that are true and long for those things that are good, that we may always make our petitions according to your gracious will; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Once again, the Church prays that God would transform her mind and heart so that they would be more like that of Christ. And once again, this is God's work.

This prayer expresses our desire to "think those things that are true." Truth is not something that is influenced or adjusted according to popularity. Truth always stands, regardless of place or time. Truth is what our Lord reveals to us in the Scriptures. Heaven and earth will pass away, but God's truth never will. It may not be popular. It may be rejected and denied. But it will not fail. May God always direct our minds to his word so that our lives will be lived according to it.

We also pray that God would teach us to "long for those things that are good." Again, God sets the definition of "good." We are poor judges of what is good. We let our flesh tell us what is good. Our flesh would have us believe that "good" is limited to what is good for me. But what is good for me is often at the expense of someone else. My neighbor would not think it is good at all, because he had to suffer or to pay for my good. Good is what God determines, for God is good. And as our loving, heavenly Father, we can be sure that whatever he gives to us (whether we view it as good or bad) is always what is good for us. It may cause us to well up with praise and thanksgiving, or it may drive us to our knees in pain and frustration. Whatever our Father gives us is ultimately driving us to Jesus for our salvation. That is always good.

When our Lord teaches us to think and to desire what is true and good, we will pray for exactly what the Father desires for us. Even if our prayer boils down to, "Father, you know best. Give me what I truly need, for I know that will be good", this is a prayer that would please our God. And he will always say "yes" to these prayers.